Afraid Shrek Would Lose Too Ugly

Tang Wulin and the others were utterly stunned as well.

Xie Xie, who had been lazily leaning against the back of his chair, instantly sat upright, his eyes filled with disbelief.

Xu Xiaoyan covered her mouth, her face full of surprise.

Tang Wulin was also frozen for several seconds before slowly coming back to his senses.

However, they quickly remembered Han Li's strength.

Thus, their shock swiftly turned into another emotion.

They felt sorry for the people of Shrek.

Tang Wulin recalled what Wu Changkong had said before.

It had been after a training session, when Ye Yingluo and Wu Changkong had been privately discussing Han Li's talent, and he had accidentally overheard them.

Although Wu Changkong had not said it outright at the time, his attitude had already been very clear.

Even at Shrek Academy, a place filled with geniuses, Han Li's talent was practically unparalleled throughout history.

Even Yun Ming, the current number one person on the continent, the president of Shrek Academy, the Sea God Pavilion Master, and the Sky-Piercing Douluo, might not possess greater talent than Han Li.

After all, Yun Ming could not have engaged in hand-to-hand combat with a Seven-Ring Soul Saint wearing Battle Armor when he was ten years old.

Yet Han Li had done it. Not only had he done it, he had done so barehanded.

Moreover, Wu Changkong's tone when he said those words had been complicated. There had been recognition for a genius, but also a faint trace of unwillingness.

He should have been the one to bring such a genius back to Shrek, but Han Li had now joined the Spirit Pagoda and become one of its core disciples.

Although Tang Wulin had not quite understood Wu Changkong's complicated feelings at the time, he still remembered those words.

Therefore, when he now heard the broadcast announce that Han Li would face Shrek's youth division alone, he suddenly understood how Wu Changkong had felt back then.

Han Li truly possessed that kind of strength.

One person against an entire team.

It sounded absurd, but if that person was Han Li, then absurdity became perfectly natural.

Amid the shock of the entire stadium, Shrek's youths took the stage in green sportswear.

They emerged from a passageway on one side. There were seven of them, all between twelve and fourteen years old.

The uniform green sportswear bore the emblem of Shrek Academy, symbolizing twenty thousand years of legacy and glory.

Their steps were orderly, and each of them carried the marks of years of training and careful refinement.

But at this moment...

Their expressions were terrible.

The boy walking at the front was the tallest. His brows were slightly furrowed, and his lips were pressed tightly into a line.

The others following behind him wore equally gloomy expressions.

Before the match, they had clearly been told that they would face the previous youth division champions of the Tianhai Grand Competition.

That had been a reasonable opponent. Winning would display Shrek's strength, while either victory or defeat would have been within expectations.

Yet now, their opponent had become a boy even younger than they were.

That meant that no matter how they won...

It would be an unfair victory.

If they won, people would say that seven Shrek students had beaten up one child. What was there to be proud of?

If they lost, there was even less to say. Seven against one and they still lost—where would Shrek's dignity go?

That was what they could not accept.

They had come to the Tianhai Grand Competition precisely to demonstrate the glory of Shrek Academy.

At the same time, as Shrek students, they carried the academy's reputation, accumulated over twenty thousand years, upon their shoulders.

They could lose to the strong.

But they could not lose to the rules, public opinion, and basic reason!

Yet now, what meaning was there in defeating someone younger than themselves?

Winning would bring no honor, while losing would be even more humiliating...

Either way, it was a dilemma.

But the match had now begun...

They had no choice but to take the stage.

Everyone was watching them.

If they withdrew now...

It would no longer be a matter of losing face. They would immediately become the laughingstock of the entire Skysea Alliance.

So now...

Every one of them looked exceedingly grim.

And at this moment...

At the other end of the platform, Han Li slowly walked over.

Sunlight fell upon him...

Casting a long shadow across the ground.

He wore an ordinary black sportswear set, without any special insignia or decoration. He looked no different from any other youth in the stands.

Yet the eyes of tens of thousands were all fixed on him.

Focused on that slender figure.

The discussions in the stands gradually quieted, replaced by a breathless silence.

Everyone wanted to see what qualifications this youth, pushed forward by the alliance to face Shrek's entire youth division alone, truly possessed.

On the platform, the leading boy of the Shrek team watched Han Li slowly approach, his brows knitting even tighter.

He sized Han Li up several times before speaking, his tone carrying obvious coldness and dissatisfaction.

"Skysea Alliance only sent you? Are you looking down on Shrek?!"

His voice was not loud, but the platform's amplification equipment carried it clearly throughout the entire venue.

Standing at the front of the seven, his body was straight and his gaze was as sharp as a blade as he stared at Han Li.

The challenge and displeasure in his tone were entirely undisguised.

It was as though the Skysea Alliance's arrangement was an insult to Shrek Academy.

As soon as those words were spoken, the entire venue erupted in cries of surprise.

The audience in the stands burst into an uproar.

Some nodded in agreement, while others shook their heads and sighed.

The Shrek student's words had struck directly at the heart of the matter.

The Skysea Alliance had arranged for one youth to fight Shrek's entire team. No matter how one looked at it, it was disrespectful toward Shrek.

Shrek had a legacy of twenty thousand years and held an exalted position on the continent. They had sent students to participate in the competition, yet their opponent had brought only one person. What was that supposed to mean?

But everyone also knew that whether Han Li admitted it or denied it, the Skysea Alliance's reputation would suffer.

If Han Li admitted, "Yes, we look down on Shrek," it would be a public provocation against the continent's foremost academy. Once word spread, the Skysea Alliance would become a target of public condemnation.

If Han Li denied it and said, "We are not looking down on you," then the Skysea Alliance would seem careless and haphazard in its arrangements, which would likewise draw criticism.

At this moment, many people present were also complaining about the alliance's decision.

The Skysea City officials in the stands looked embarrassed.

Administrator Xia's expression had stiffened as well.

Although he already knew Han Li's strength, being publicly questioned by Shrek in such a setting still made it difficult for him to save face.

At that moment, Han Li spoke. His voice was calm and natural, as though he were stating an utterly ordinary fact.

"One is enough."

"Any more..."

"The alliance is afraid Shrek would lose too ugly."

As his words fell, the entire venue first went silent, then erupted into discussions even louder than before.

Some laughed, some shook their heads, and some stared wide-eyed in disbelief.

The crowd in the stands stirred, their murmured conversations blending into a buzzing roar.